Friday, September 11, 2015

OVERCOMING FEAR OF DEATH

A medical missionary captured by bandits in China, informed
that he was to be shot at a spot ten minutes' distance away, tells how a
terrible fear & helplessness came over him at the thought of such a death
so far away from his native country, from his family & his friends.

But he had strength enough to pray. This was his prayer:
"My Lord God, have mercy on me & give me strength for this trial. Take
away all fear & if I have to die, let me die like a man."

Instantly, he said, his terrible fear began to disappear. By
the time he had reached the gorge where he was to be shot, he felt perfectly
calm & unafraid. At the last moment, however, the bandits relented &
his life was spared.

In the days which followed, full of danger & suffering,
the memory of this experience was cherished more & more:

"My own will had failed in the most critical moment of
my life. But the knowledge that I could depend on a power greater than my own,
one that had not failed me in that crisis, sustained me in a wonderful way to
the very end of my captivity. What ingratitude it would be in me not to
proclaim this power."

- (moreillustrations.com)

"When the time comes for you to die, you need not be
afraid, because death cannot separate you from God's love." - Charles Spurgeon.

Psa 118:6 (ESV): "The LORD is on my side; I will not
fear. What can man do to me?"

"Death may be the King of terrors... but Jesus is the
King of kings!" - D.L. Moody.